Clinical News Digest

Staff

2/20/2008

US Pharm. 2008;33(2):11.

FDA Modifies Prescribing
Information for Contraceptive Skin Patch
The FDA issued a
notice that it modified the prescribing information for the Ortho Evra
Contraceptive Transdermal Patch to include the results of a new
epidemiological study that found women who used the birth control patch were
at a higher risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE) than those who
used birth control pills. VTE can lead to pulmonary embolism.

The FDA believes that Ortho
Evra is a safe and effective method of contraception when used according to
the labeling, which recommends that women with concerns or risk factors for
serious blood clots talk with their health care provider before using the
product.

Shingles Vaccination
Reduces Postherpetic Neuralgia in Seniors
Research published
in The Journal of Painrevealed that older patients who are admistered a
shingles (herpes zoster) vaccination might also be minimizing their chances of
developing a chronic pain condition known as postherpetic neuralgia.

Shingles affects approximately
one million Americans every year. While antiviral therapies have improved the
medical management of the condition, many patients still develop pain
complications, most commonly postherpetic neuralgia. According to the study,
vaccinated patients had a 51% reduction in the incidence of herpes zoster and
a 61% reduction in the onset of shingles versus the placebo group. In
addition, the rate of post!=herpetic neuralgia was 66% lower in the vaccinated
group. The herpes zoster vaccine was approved by the FDA in 2006 and is
indicat!=ed for the prevention of shingles in individuals age 60 and older.

Thimerosal Probably Not a
Primary Cause of Autism
An increase in the
diagnosis of autism and related conditions in recent years has led many people
to believe that thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative in vaccines
administered to children, was the main cause of the upsurge in cases. A report
in Archives of General Psychiatry indicates that this may not be the
case at all, echoing a 2004 report by the Institute of Medicine that said
there was a lack of data supporting the theory that thimerosal causes autism.

According to the report,
Robert Schechter, MD, MSc, and Judith K. Grether, PhD, of the California
Department of Public Health studied the prevalence of autism in children in
California from 1995 through March 2007. "The estimated prevalence of autism
for children at each year of age from 3 to 12 years increased throughout the
study period," they reported. During that period, exposure to thimerosal
during infancy and early childhood declined as the preservative was eliminated
from most childhood vaccines. Despite this, although the number of
developmental disabilities increased, it did so at a slower rate.

The researchers cautioned,
"Although our analysis of [the data] shows an increase in autism in California
despite the removal of thimerosal from most vaccines, we support the continued
quest for the timely discovery of modifiable risk factors for autism and
related conditions. Continuing evaluation of the trends in the prevalence of
autism for children born in recent years is warranted to confirm our
findings."

FDA Approves Blood Test for
MRSA
The FDA approved
for marketing the first rapid blood test for the drug-resistant staph
bacterium known as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus).
The new blood test, BD GeneOhm StaphSR Assay, is manufactured by BD
Diagnostics and uses molecular methods to identify whether a blood sample
contains genetic material from the MRSA bacterium or from the more common and
less dangerous staph bacter!=ium, which can still be treated with methicillin.
In effect, this test reduces time spent waiting for results from more than two
days to two hours, which leads to a quicker diagnosis and more effective
treatment.

The FDA cautions that the test
should be used only in patients suspected of having a staph infection and
should not be used as the sole basis for diagnosis, as it may reflect the
bacterium's presence in patients who have been successfully treated for staph
infections. It also will not rule out other complicating conditions or
infections.
To
comment on this article, contact editor@uspharmacist.com.

U.S. Pharmacist is a monthly journal dedicated to providing the nation's pharmacists with up-to-date,
authoritative, peer-reviewed clinical articles relevant to contemporary pharmacy practice in a variety of settings,
including community pharmacy, hospitals, managed care systems, ambulatory care clinics, home care organizations,
long-term care facilities, industry and academia. The publication is also useful to pharmacy technicians, students,
other health professionals and individuals interested in health management. Pharmacists licensed in the U.S. can earn
Continuing Education credits through Postgraduate Healthcare Education, LLC, accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)
as a provider of continuing pharmacy education.